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The MTV Video Music Award nominees for 2003 were announced yesterday. The ceremony will be hosted by Chris Rock and airs (for the first of many times) August 28th. As...

July 25, 2003

Video Vanguards (or not)

The MTV Video Music Award nominees for 2003 were announced yesterday. The ceremony will be hosted by Chris Rock and airs (for the first of many times) August 28th. As with the recent Emmy nods, the PCD takes a closer look at some of the nominees (we'll be back in August to pick the winners):

Video Of The Year
50 Cent, "In Da Club", Eminem, "Lose Yourself", Johnny Cash, "Hurt", Justin Timberlake, "Cry Me a River", Missy "Misdemeanor" Elliott, "Work It"

»Always a strange mix of big songs & amazing videos in this category. That said, the list can't be argued too much. Although, I enjoyed Missy's "Gossip Folks" vid much more than "Work It."

Best Male Video
50 Cent, "In Da Club", Eminem, "Lose Yourself", John Mayer, "Your Body is a Wonderland", Johnny Cash, "Hurt", Justin Timberlake, "Cry Me a River"

»What a wildly disparate list this is. A solid one, though. It was a minor hit for Mayer, but it's sad to see his worst song/video nominated here.

Best Female Video
Avril Lavigne, "I'm With You", Beyonce f/ Jay-Z, "Crazy in Love", Christina Aguilera, "Dirrty", Jennifer Lopez, "I'm Glad", Missy "Misdemeanor" Elliott, "Work It"

»Which is the better video--"I'm Glad" or "Dirrty"? Actually, I would replace Xtina's breakout "Beautiful" (better song AND better video) with the dirrty sex romp.

Best Rock Video
Evanescence f/ Paul McCoy, "Bring Me to Life", Good Charlotte, "Lifestyles of the Rich & Famous", Linkin Park, "Somewhere I Belong", Metallica, "St. Anger", The White Stripes, "Seven Nation Army"

»How about dropping the ear-piercing Evanescence for a good song and great video--the Chili Peppers' "Can't Stop" (directed by "Hurt" helmer Mark Romanek)

Best New Artist In A Video
50 Cent, "In Da Club", All-American Rejects, "Swing, Swing", Evanescence f/ Paul McCoy, "Bring Me to Life", Kelly Clarkson, "Miss Independent", Sean Paul, "Get Busy", Simple Plan, "Addicted"

»If there were no 50 Cent on this list, this would be a tight (but dull) race for the prize. As it is, there's no drama here. 50 goes up against some lame competition like the painfully cliched Evanescence and lightweight dancehall of Sean Paul. Hard to believe that Kelly Clarkson is the second most interesting artist on this list.

Best Video From A Film
Britney Spears f/ Pharrell of N.E.R.D., "Boys (Co-Ed Remix)" ("Austin Powers in Goldmember"), Eminem, "Lose Yourself" ("8 Mile"), JC Chasez, "Blowing Me Up (With Her Love)" ("Drumline"), Madonna, "Die Another Day" ("Die Another Day")

»This could be the worst list of nominees in MTV history. Okay, we've got the winner (Eminem), but nobody to fill out the category--so what now? Hmm, let's give Britney a nom just cause nobody's heard any music from her in a while. Nobody liked that Madonna song, but gosh, she's Madonna, and we're MTV, so she gets one. Anything else? We can't have just three nominations. Oh, wasn't there a JC Chasez song in Drumline? Huh? JC has a solo career? Sure, why not, but only if there actually is a video for that song.

MTV2 Award
AFI, "Girl's Not Grey", Common f/ Mary J. Blige, "Come Close", Interpol, "PDA"
Queens of the Stone Age, "No One Knows", The Roots f/ Cody Chesnutt, "The Seed 2.0"

»Ahh, the underachieving little brother award. Not a bad list after all. As an avid MTV2 viewer, I can't argue much, though they could've replaced Common with a little J5. The annoying thing about MTV2 though is that much of what they play is the stuff MTV shoudl be playing--ie, Snoop, Jay-Z, Eminem, Metallica, Linkin Park, etc. Leaving little room for the kind of artists on this list.

Viewer's Choice
50 Cent, "In Da Club", Beyonce f/ Jay-Z, "Crazy in Love", Eminem, "Lose Yourself", Good Charlotte, "Lifestyles of the Rich & Famous", Justin Timberlake, "Cry Me a River", Kelly Clarkson, "Miss Independent"

»Remember in the 90s when viewers' choice meant something? These were all popular, heavily played cuts (save Miss Clarkson's) so all's fair. But I'd love to see music with a lasting impact rise again to popularity as it did in the 90s. Is it too soon for 90s nostalgio?

Finally, much love for the artistic videos--
Johnny Cash "Hurt" (art direction, cinematography, editing, direction)
Missy Elliott "Work It" (cinematography, editing, art direction, special effects, direction)
Radiohead "There There" (editing, art direction, special effects)
Coldplay "The Scientist" (direction, breakthrough video)

Posted by Queuetipp at July 25, 2003 11:34 AM